thread for middle age to older Christian women.
Comments
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Hi Nancy, thanks for asking about me, I appreciate that! Well, I was initially quite excited that the CT scan and whole body scan with nuclear contrast did not show the enhancing osseous lesion that the MRI had picked up two weeks ago. But I was told in another group here, that that is not uncommon. Apparently, the MRI is the gold standard for picking up bone mets as compared to the CT scan and whole body scan. My oncologist was much more hopeful today though. He said that he thought it would be atypical for such a large lesion in my sacrum to not show up at all in the CT scan and whole body scan with nuclear contrast. He was very glum two weeks ago after seeing the MRI but much more positive today. He did order a pelvic MRI next week just to double check to see what is going on and if they find something, he wants to get it biopsied. But I pressed him for a guess based on his experience if he thought it was a malignant tumor based on the two recent scans, and he said he felt 70% sure at this point that it was not a malignant tumor. I don't know how to feel - I was feeling much more positive after leaving the doctor's office because his hope was contagious. But after hearing in another thread that a clear CT and nuclear whole body scan does not mean much with bone mets, I can feel the despair creeping up again. My blood pressure was 150 over 100 today in the doctor's office and it has never been that high, ever. I just had an EKG and Echo last month and both tests were perfect - no problems at all, so I guess the near constant stress from the last two weeks has really affected me. I am trying to relax and have a whole list of wonderful prayers and spiritual books to read to give me hope. I just hope my blood pressure is paying attention and goes down, hehe! Much love to all here in this group and everyone of you is in my prayers tonight!
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Tricia,
Remember that your oncologist is the expert here. If he was more positive today then try to think on what he said. I am glad he is being proactive and has ordered another MRI.
I will be praying for you and that God will give you supernatural peace. Pleasant distractions can be helpful when I am in a high stress time besides my reading of my Bible and praying.
You will get through this. We are all here to support you too.
Love,
Nancy
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Good morning, my lovely ladies!
The only way I can keep track of and respond to multiple posts is to start a Word document, and respond to the posts that way. Otherwise, if I try to scroll back to see who said what, my response gets lost, Carol gets frustrated, and that's no fun! LOL
Nancy, thank you for your encouragement. When "they" saw the first CT scan after the COVID hospitalization, it was, or so I thought, just one area of ground glass opacity. I was pretty sure it was COVID related and was not really worried about it. The pulmonologist thought the same but wanted to see me again after my next routine CT scan. I read the report but didn't see anything about additional areas of concern. Suddenly (as I read it) there are "multiple lung nodules" and I don't know what to think about that. I'll ask when I see him, but there doesn't seem to be any point in asking him before my next CT scan on Monday.
I love that scripture. The worship song "Still" is one of my favorites. It refers to that scripture and ends with, "I will be still and know that you are God."
I hope your credit card issues are soon resolved and you can take those off of your "worry list."
Tld2019, thinking of you today. I remember how overwhelmed I felt in the beginning of my Stage IV diagnosis. I'm so glad you have this group where you can come and ramble if you need to (I don't think you are rambling, though!) and ask for prayers. I pray for continued peace in the midst of the storm. One of the quotes I have next to my computer is the words to the song, "Sometimes He calms the storm, sometimes He calms me." I love that!
DH drove safely home from Bishop to San Diego last night. It was snowing and it was quite the drive. Apparently, they closed the highway sometime last night, so he made the right call to leave at 7:00 pm. He got home around 1:00 am.
Wheatfields, thank you for you for your prayers. I am eternally grateful for the love and support here.
So there's my ramble.
Love to all,
Carol
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I feel like all I have been doing for the last month or two has been going for test to rule things out like bladder cancer praise God no cancer there, deep vein thrombosis , just surface vein problems a vaginal infection from an antibiotic I was taking because the cat scratched me on my lymphedema arm and a cold sore that doesn't seem to be going away. all this to say these things are minor compared to what some of you ladies are going through and I am praying for all of you.
By the way speaking of dentists there is a mouth rinse called Therasol which you can order online through Google or maybe even Amazon that helps with the gums. Also there is a cream called Remin Pro which also can be ordered online to fill in underneath the gums. These both help with dry mouth that can deteriorate the enamel. Feel free to pm me for more information.
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my husband and I went to see Jesus Revolution the movie. If you get a chance please don't miss it it's an amazing movie and a true story.
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Jean,
I think that movie is about the Jesus people revival in the 70's. They set up a tent in my hometown and I visited their rallies and I got baptized in our Lake with them. It was quite an exciting time. I was a new Christian and everything was an adventure and being baptized in the lake was something special. I was baptized in sixth grade after confirmation but truly I was not a born again Christian until after my junior year in college so this was very meaningful to me. I would like to see that movie. Glad you saw it and posted.
I will have to respond to some of your posts later. I have some amazing news.
My newest fraud situation with my credit card was resolved already. This was handled by the fraud dept only if I understand it correctly. They are to send me a letter with details which I haven't received yet.
I checked my credit score with one of the credit agencies and the remark was removed which I called and asked them to remove and just as fast as my credit score fell 166pt it now has risen 166pt back to 800. I am so thankful and amazed. The other agency is the one I have not sent a hard copy of my personal info yet and then I was going to ask them to remove the remark as well. They have not reported in yet. So I cannot tell you what a load of that is.
Thank you so much for your prayers. Past my bedtime. Good night dear sisters
Love,
Nancy
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I'll check out those gum product suggestions!
I've had a sore throat since yesterday. My daughter has been sick (again) all week so maybe I finally caught it. However, the doctor I work with was sick this week and kept lowering their mask to sneeze right next to me. I wish I had made that up, but I didn't. You would think doctors would know better. I understand not wanting your mask to get gross, but it's easy to replace them. I would have happily brought the box over. I tried to stay away but we had a meeting so there was only so much I could do ...Please pray that this will ease quickly.
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Jean, little things can add up. We all are feeling illness fatigue and it is no small matter. I am happy your bladder is clear. I would love to go see the movie. My husband and I were just starting our pastoral ministry in the 70s so we were thick into learning the ropes and building our small church. But it made an impact on us just the same. Thanks for the dental information. It is good information to have.
Teka, beautiful cat.
gb, wow... I am stunned your doctor would do this and am so sorry you are ill. Our medical provider (UCHealth) has cancelled the mask mandate starting March first in both hospitals I attend regularly and all their facilities. We shall see how that works. I may still wear mine for awhile.
Nancy, praise God for the removal of the credit card fraud mountain. That must be a huge relief.
It is sunny today with no snow projected for a week...we can use the break as it has been a rough winter. Stay warm everyone!
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Nancy, I'm so glad that things seem to be getting resolved with your credit situation.
gb, I'm stunned, too! What person, let alone a doctor, pulls down a mask to sneeze???
teka, we had a dog who would drink out his bowl only once. Then the water had to be changed. He preferred the tub faucet or the "porcelain punchbowl." Silly boy!
We drove over the mountain to see my dad yesterday. It was pouring in San Diego and snowing over the mountain. Saw several spinout accidents on the freeway, but the trip over the mountain was uneventful. The snow was beautiful and special since we don't usually get snow like that. I understand that San Francisco got snow! WOW.
Am working on my next blog post, "Spaghetti Sauce and Passwords" and will hopefully get it published this afternoon or evening. I'm also working on the one after that. It will be titled, "Miles to Go" from the Robert Frost poem.
Thank you for the prayers for my scans this week.
Love to all,
Carol
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Nancy, that is wonderful news! I'm so happy that the credit card issuer satisfactorily resolved the problem.
GB, doctors should know better than to pull down masks to sneeze in such close proximity to others. I'm sorry this doctor was irresponsible. I hope your sore throat quickly subsides.
I have an appointment on Friday at one of the area hospitals. A couple of hospitals no longer have masking mandates, but I'll be in the infusion center around fragile patients. Wearing my mask is the least I can do to protect them.
Blessings on your Sunday, dear friends.
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Jean, I hope your string of challenges is ending. I am sure it was a relief to get good news on your bladder tests but it sounds like you have been dealing with many other issues too. I had this chorus running through my head all day. I couldn't remember all of the lyrics but I imagine you know this.
"Turn your eyes upon Jesus. Look full in His wonderful face. And the things of earth will grow strangely dim. In the light of His glory and grace."
I have found this to be true for me lately as I have been studying the Bible for many hours a week as I am taking a Beth Moore class.
Jesus Revolution is playing near me. I hope to see it before it is gone. One of the hosts on my Christian radio station talked about seeing it and is wanting to see it again she thought it was so good.
GB, I sure hope you don't get down sick. Everyone reacted to your doctor you work with pulling down their mask to cough. I was more like why are you at work in the first place if you are sick!!! I guess we are returning to pre Covid practices now where it is a badge of honor to work while sick. Sorry for my sarcasm. How are your gums now that some time has passed?
Teka, your cat is so cute. Cammie has a swan fountain she prefers over her water bowl but after the first time plugging it in she put her head under the spout and was drinking while getting quite the shower. LOL She seemed oblivious to what was happening. It is probably a poor design as many cats probably would do the same. I just unplug it and she is good to go.
Chris, we have been very fortunate here to have gotten through most of the winter with very little snow. We have had rain instead. In fact this morning I was awakened by the tornado sirens going off. I hopped out of bed quickly. The storm was so fast moving by the time I turned on the TV it had already passed through our city. I hope your winter doesn't extend well in the spring with all of the snow.
Carol, I have a good friend in Berkeley, CA and her son lives in San Francisco. I owe her an email and am anxious to see if they got snow in Berkeley. She had just sent me a picture of her beautiful flowers a few days ago and this hummingbird she says visits everyday. I hope her flowers didn't get zapped with this strange weather. I hope her poor little hummingbird survived. Your upcoming blog sounds like it will be a good one with your humor and wisdom woven in your words. I will be anxious to read it.
Hershey, I think it will be a while before our hospitals and medical clinics remove the mask mandate. I am still wearing my mask because I seem to catch things and have trouble getting rid of them. I still see quite a few masks when grocery shopping.
My credit card saga will probably still be a while before all of the credit bureaus remove the "remark" that sent my scores diving. I finally got my letter off to one of the bureaus who could not authenticate my identity from my phone conversation with them. I did read just last night that new regulations said that disputing a charge on your credit card could mean a change in your credit score. Most of the places I read said it would NOT affect your score. So just an FYI. Before you dispute anything if you end up in the unfortunate position I am in I would gather as much information before going that route. My particular company may deal with suspected fraudulent activity differently than others but I will be very careful if this happens again. My loan officer at my bank said that the credit card companies have to report any of those disputes to the credit bureaus which I knew but are not as careful to report the issues that have been resolved so that is why I am trying to take that matter into my own hands.
Have a good week dear sisters and I know I will be singing that chorus I typed above and you might want to join me in that.
Love,
Nancy
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My gums are mostly feeling better but still bleeding on occasion. I've been easy to bleed lately though, and the MO checked my platelets and said everything looked fine. Anyway, I sort of feel like the deep cleaning made my gums worse than they were, but we'll see. I go back in a few weeks. I'm still eating softer foods.
I'm feeling better, just a little stuffy now. Yeah, pulling the mask down to sneeze is awful and we were all horrified watching that. I was feeling a lot better yesterday but still took the day off out of caution for my coworkers. I'm going in today but will keep to myself, and will keep my mask up.
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gb, glad your gums are better. Mine bled a lot the other night. That hasn't happened in a long time. Now, they're fine.
CT and bone scan came back as stable. The lung issues appear to have clear, but I have an appointment with the pulmonologist tomorrow just as a check. Brain MRI is on Friday.
Still working on the blog post. I can't quite get the ending the way I want. I read that when one writes something you re-write it, then re-write what you've re-written. That's the truth! It's never good enough and never perfect. But then, I'm not perfect, so why should I expect my writing to be perfect?
Love and prayers,
Carol
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GB, I'm glad your gums are better and that you are feeling better. This might perk you up. Spring is only 20 days away. I know that perked me up. Praying you all of your family gets back to good health very soon.
Carol, good news on your CT and bone scans! Stable is good. I hope you have your mind eased with your apt with your pulmonologist tomorrow. I know you are concerned about your brain MRI. I am praying for you. When I had my first brain MRI I was more concerned if there would be evidence of dementia more so than a tumor. I do have a benign tumor and the other stuff which I guess is just aging but I know each time I have a repeat MRI there is concern of it growing. I am praying you will have NOTHING of concern in your results.
I just finished reading your blog after a very frustrating afternoon dealing with customer service people who put me on hold for 20 min and then drop the call or saying their office is closed when you know it is supposed to be open. So reading your blog was a nice change of pace. Actually today I was reminded in a Legacy email that my dear, dear friend had died this day quite a few years ago at 96. It reminded me so much of exactly what you mentioned. Keeping track of things and lists and to do lists can crowd out our precious time with our friends and I am so guilty of just that so I could really relate. I have another dear friend who is in her 90's as well and I keep putting off making arrangements to visit her. What I fear is that I will get "that" call one day that she has passed and I will really feel badly for not making more time to see her. This friend was the person I sat next to in church for many years and now that she has dementia her daughter has been hesitant to bring her to church which really saddens me. So I will reach out to go visit her. She lives a little ways out of town but that is NO excuse. BTW I will never ask you for your spaghetti sauce recipe. LOL I am glad you got to visit some old friends. I spent a long time on the phone catching up with an old friend and it was so great to talk. I just heard on my Christian radio that the secret to happiness was spending quality time with someone daily. We need to love and to feel loved by others. So your blog was a great reminder of just that. Keep up the good work. As far as reediting you should see all the edits on my photography I do. I am usually never completely satisfied. Sounds like we are a lot like.
Praying for you for your upcoming apts and MRI.
Love,
Nancy
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GB I'm glad to hear that your gums are healing. And Carol, praying for the MRI on Friday and a good report. I was at the ophthalmologist this morning and the eye has cleared up and the pressure is 19 which is in the normal range. So thankful for that and thank you all for your prayers. My eyes are real dry and I'm supposed to he said continue being aggressive with preservative free drops and warm compresses. Praying for each of you!
Love, Wheatfields
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Wheatfields, so glad your eyes have healed. GB, glad your gums are healing.
Carol, loved your blog post. Yes, I feel guilt all the time for things I haven't done yet with lists, etc. I am not sure why I am procrastinating...it's been almost seven years since my stage IV diagnosis! I have no excuse as I have the time now. But you are right, being with friends and family is what is most important. My DH wants to go tent camping and is looking at all the conveniences I would need. Part of me doesn't want the hassle and fear of the "what ifs". But another part of me wants to do this to be with my husband and family on a trip that we did many, many times when the kids were growing up. Yes, we need to do it with the grandkids for them. It is the main reason I am fighting so hard. To be an example for my kids and to make memories for my family which is so dear to me. I am searching for my next crochet project with little luck. Perhaps making a memory folder would be the answer. Thank you.
Love, Chris
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Wheatfields, I am glad to hear your eye has cleared up and the pressure has returned to normal. I am sure that is a big relief.
Chris, that would be wonderful if you could go camping. I hope that happens for you.
Carol, praying things went well today and praying for your MRI for tomorrow.
Here is a link to that Hymn I mentioned recently. This singer, Taya Smith ( new last name now but can't remember it) is one of my most favorite Christian singers. She is the one that sang "Oceans". If ever there was a person that was totally surrendered to God it is her and it comes out so strong in her singing. I hope this link works.
https://www.google.com/search?q=turn+your+eyes+upo...:578330ba,vid:7Ka7bVQmbnk
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Wow, it has been quiet around here! I hope that means everyone is doing ok...
Carol, how did your MRI go?
I am having pain around my port radiating to my arm and shoulder so am I going to have a scan to see if it "moved." no other symptoms. I don't want them to just remove it only to have to put in another one in the near future. I have no knowledge of port issues... waiting on the scheduler to call. Just waiting for Spring.
Chris
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Hi everyone.
My desktop computer that I use to post here was hacked and it is sitting unplugged right now. I had to decide what to do and that event was the tipping point to buy a new one which I did. This is the same computer I have had issues with since last summer. So that is good but it will be sitting in the box until the Geek Squad comes on March 31 and April 1 to get things up and running again. I have been battling a bad earache for several days and finally went to urgent care yesterday. I have a lot of fluid on one ear but the doctor didn't think it was infected even though she gave me some antibiotics just in case. I am on a three day prednisone course and some nose spray. I felt like I was getting sick on Tues with rising temp so I am a bit surprised there is no infection. One of my friends and I had bought tickets to see the orchid show at the Chicago Botanical Garden a few weeks ago and I hope I can go. Normally I would probably be staying inside doing nothing but resting but I am probably going to go unless I feel much worse today. We are to go tomorrow.
I have been praying for all of you in my absence.
Carol, have you received any news yet?
Chris, I will be praying that your port issue can easily be remedied without having to have another placement.
Take care dear sisters.
Love,
Nancy
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Hi everyone, thank you for checking on me. My MRI showed no mets to the brain but did show "something on C2" of my spine. My MO has referred me to an ortho surgeon (not the ortho oncologist) and a neurosurgeon. I'm also to see a neurologist (not the same as the neurosurgeon) for the headaches. I'll see the neurosurgeon on Monday of next week. but the neurologist isn't until May 26 and the orthopedic surgeon is on the 30 of March. I also have an appointment with a PT to work on strengthening, balance, etc. I'm doing OK, but just feeling discouraged right now. Trying to keep all these appointments is a bit of a struggle.
DH cancelled our reservation to the Ahwahnee Hotel in Yosemite next week. The Park is supposed to be closed at least through next Sunday and with the snow and the rain that is now forecasted, it's probably just best to try again later.
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Carol, I am so sorry that you are having to go through more tests and apts. I am sure your head is spinning. Add PT to the mix and that is understandably overwhelming. It is not easy getting into neurosurgeons so getting in as fast as you are is a good thing. Hopefully the doctor will be able to use your recent brain MRI to go on since the area of concern is so high up on the neck.
We will certainly all be lifting you up in prayer. Know that God will get you through this just as He has been with you all along. I will pray for wisdom for all of the doctors and wisdom for you in making decisions moving forward. Most of all I pray for peace as you deal with each of these doctors and apts.
Love,
Nancy
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Nancy, thank you for your prayers. You (and Cammie) remain in my prayers.
teka, thank you for your post. I deleted some old Favorites from my list, and then copied my list to a PDF so that I don't lose any of them.
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I'm looking forward to seeing the new forums!!
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I am a Christian and love our savior. I believe in healing. Still I'm confused and scared. I will be 4 years out from lumpectomy and radiation I take Anastrozole. I am really diligent about taking it and keeping all my appointments. I had routine mammogram Thursday and they found concerning microcalcifications near scar. It doesn’t seem likely I would have a recurrence while on Anastrozole.Radiologist told me it was a coin toss?? I had biopsy yesterday at a different location and after they were done the doctor sat down and said I want to offer you some reassurance. What I see looks more like lucent calcification from fat necrosis due to surgery and radiation. I don't think she would say that lightly. Any thoughts or similar experience
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beaglelove, welcome! This is a wonderful group. I'm sorry you're dealing with this new circumstance, and I hope that it is "just" fat necrosis. I haven't been in your exact situation, but it sounds like your doctor is not thinking this is a new cancer. Do let us know when you hear about your biopsy results.
(((hugs)))
Carol
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This is a separate post, but it's a bit of Christian humor that you might appreciate. So here goes…
A few years ago, while we were still meeting at church in person, a man showed up looking for help. He wasn't looking for a hand-out, but rather some help in buying some tools that would enable him to work on cars. My husband happened to be there at the time, and took him tool shopping.
Fast forward to about a year ago. This guy shows up again and my husband happened to be at the church again. The guy says, "A few years ago, I came here looking for help and some guy helped me. I want you to know that it changed my life. I'm clean and sober, and I would like to say thank you to the person who helped me." My husband told him that he had been the one who was there that day and was so happy to hear that he was doing well.
This man now wants to help out around the church – not for any pay or reward, but just to give back. Being in a beach community, we sometimes attract transients who want to camp on the church property, sell drugs, and get into various types of trouble. So our new friend has offered to talk to these people, ask then to please leave, and to offer them alternatives to their current life-style. He loves to clean up other people's trash and stuff they leave behind. He has a true heart for God. He and my husband talk on the phone a couple of times each week.
So, here's the funny part: A few weeks ago, he had called Uber for a ride somewhere. He got a text message that said something like, "Jesus is almost there." Then, "Jesus is here." If you're not familiar with the Spanish pronunciation of "Jesus" it sounds like "Hay-Seuss." It's not an uncommon name in the Hispanic community. Anyway, our friend called my husband, just to tell him the story. We all laughed about. Who would have thought we could get a text from Jesus saying that he's almost here?
I hope I haven't offended anyone with this. I thought it was a sweet story.
Hoping everyone has a blessed Saturday.
Carol
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Carol, thank you for sharing, that is a sweet story! My nurse friend one time was picked up by a police officer for speeding and his name was Jesus, and she said it made her think twice. Welcome Beaglelove, we will be praying that the biopsy does turn out to be just fat necrosis. It sounds like your doctor is thinking that too. Carol, we will be praying for your upcoming appointments and a good report. Just wanted to touch base and let everyone know I am praying for them, before we migrate to anything. I don't have the confidence that GB does that it's a positive thing to migrate to a new forum
Love, Wheatfields
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thank you responding and for orayet
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Welcome, beaglelove! We will be praying for good biopsy results.
Carol, what a sweet and touching story! Thank you for sharing it with all of us.
Wheatfields, it's good to see you. I hope your eye has completely healed.
Chris, has there been any improvement with you arm?
I was not aware a redesign of the website was in the works. I do hope its deployment goes more smoothly than the last one.
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Welcome Beaglelove. I had a situation very much like yours about five years out from my lumpectomy. Mine turned out to be scar tissue and I believe they called it fat necrosis as well. During the biopsy they inserted a marker in that area so that in future mammograms that area would be marked so as not to cause future alarm. I was very scared as it was taking a much longer time from initial mammogram to finally hearing it was benign. I can totally understand your concern. I would place a lot of stock in what the doctor said to you. I am going to pray that you get your results really soon and that it will be good news. Please let us know how things go and feel free to join in our little group whenever you want to.
Carol, I just want to ask if your husband has a single twin brother. LOL You have a good man for sure. That had to be so rewarding to hear that he totally changed that man's life. I would love to get a text message saying Jesus is here. The thing is HE IS. Love your story. Praying for you as you go through all of your apts. Thank you for your prayers. My three days on the Predisone is over and I was able to go to the Chicago Botanic Garden orchid show yesterday. I did really well but today I still have my earache but I am praying I won't have to do the antibiotics. The fluid is draining some. When I got home late yesterday from our little day trip Cammie got a reprieve from her daily steroid application in her ear. When I tried to put it in when I got home she was having none of it so I had to give up but I did get some in this morning but not without a hassle. Sigh. She has done well on most days.
Hershey, if you scroll back a bit Teka left some info on this new forum situation which is starting tomorrow. I hope we don't lose our connection with each other in the mean time. I am not doing anything special and won't be posting any pictures during this migration. Has your family decided on a day to Memorialize your Mom yet? I know she wanted an outdoor celebration. Spring will be here before we know it.
Chris, praying for your arm and hoping it is better.
Remember to move your clocks forward one hour tonight.
Have a good weekend dear sisters.
Love,
Nancy
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